‘Does powerful magic exist?’ is a better question to ask than ‘Does God exist?’. Why? Because the quesion of magic is as pertinent to belief in religion and it is more revealing to examine.

The three monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, all depend on God’s using powerful magic to create the universe out of nothing simply by wishing it and his being able to control the universe or any part thereof in the same way.

It is harder to come up with a negative, ‘No’, in answer to the question of God’s existence than to the question of powerful magic. Without thinking hard, it is easy to start with the default idea that allows that the possibility of the existence of any person should have some validity and that a reasonable starting position might be to give, perhaps, a 50-50 probablity of a person’s existence. It seems a bit impolite or churlish to begin by denying a person’s existence whoever that person might be.

So let us consider instead the question ‘Does powerful magic exist?’.

For a thinking adult, it is apparent from experience of the real world that magic belongs to the realms of dreams, fairy tales, legends, and mythology. It is a product of imagination and wishful thinking. In real life, we always look both ways before crossing the road to make sure that there is no traffic approaching. We know that the physical world behaves according to its own uncaring scientific laws. In all of human history, there is no solid evidence of magic ever taking place.

Moreover, and this is the most important point, there is no conceivable mechanism or process by which magic could work. It simply does not make sense. Therefore for a thinking educated adult to believe in magic seems precarious at the very least and, for most people, untenable.

(It is also inconceivable for the same reason, for a person, such as God, for example, to exist and function without a physical body and a physical brain by which to think and process information.)

Further, to propose to a capable adult that she or he should believe in magic seems insulting and provocative. Therefore, to believe in a God who requires adults to believe in magic is blatantly preposterous unless one believes God to be perverse and cruel.

To conclude, I propose that an intelligent adult will be inclined to reject belief in powerful magic as implausible and infeasible and, in consequence, that she or he will reject all three monotheistic religions.